Empanada nirvana

Praise Julia!

So I was happily putting off certain duties today, as one should on a Saturday afternoon: Dishes? Who needs 'em? Laundry? Hell, what's the point?

And besides, I can't "do anything" productive when the dog is NAPPING, can I? Gomez asleep on a Saturday afternoon??!!? It's like a rare and precious moment, like a solar eclipse! Or Haley's Comet! Or a biblical plague of locusts! Or a ride up 14th street during the afternoon rush without a dense crush of people and someone's shoulder in my mouth all the way to Irving Street!

What? Ah yes!

'tis better to bypass all those chores and catch up on email.

Friday's digest from the Columbia Heights listserv had only four messages, but the topmost item had these golden words:

---
Julia's Empanadas opened today, in the triangle area between
Park & Kenyon @ 14th St, next to Pollo Campero.
They've got some great food on hand!
---

I started trembling like a junkie instantly.

I've raved about Julia's already. And I've been going to the Dupont location regularly for a classic DC lunch on-the-hoof, and it's always a satisfying treat. Those "pillows of bliss" are cheap as hell and very tasty. As I said, Julia's deserves a place in DC's foodie paradise next to other heavy-hitters like Ben's Chili Bowl and the Florida Avenue Grill. Infact, we can just call that The Holy Trinity of DC food right there.

So I shut down the email and ran like a spastic idiot to the corner of 14th and Park.


I got my salteñas, asked if I could take a few photos inside, and spent the next few minutes munching happily whilst walking around the block like I owned the friggin' place. Like Paul Muni in the original Scarface. The world is mine.

To paraphrase Brundle-Fly:

Julia's Empanadas are inherently encouraging. They make a man a KING.


Of course everyone has their own priorities. For me, history will show that Julia's was much more meaningful than the new Target. At least in terms of repeat visits between the two places.

And a few doors down, the opening of D'vines (the beer/wine store for discriminating snobs like me who dig a Maudite now and then) will be the next big thing. Watch for that in a couple of weeks.